the pond is comeing along nice. keep us posted with the pictures
My 5,000 Gal Pond Build In Photos
- Thread starter koikeepr
- Start date
stroppy
stroppy
nice seeing your build ...and michael will have some tales to tell when he gets back to school ! :0)
Day 4 of the build. We are two courses of block up and we're expecting a thunderstorm for the evening. I've got a tarp to cover "the hole" as we call it, as we don't want to be dealing with a mud pit come morning.
Here, Wendell my builder buddy is still laying the first course. He grew up as a brick mason, so the man can butter a block like I've never seen. He will get the mortar on the trowel and throw it on that 1" edge and not a single drop falls off. Amazing!
In this pic you can see that Wendell does not use a saw to cut the blocks. He simply scores it with the edge of his sharp trowel and then gives it a good whack the the thing just pops open like an easter egg in the right spot. Not sure how he does that.
Here he's working on the second course of the back wall. Those corner 2x4 posts are guide posts, where he's got his level string attached to follow.
Here, Wendell my builder buddy is still laying the first course. He grew up as a brick mason, so the man can butter a block like I've never seen. He will get the mortar on the trowel and throw it on that 1" edge and not a single drop falls off. Amazing!
In this pic you can see that Wendell does not use a saw to cut the blocks. He simply scores it with the edge of his sharp trowel and then gives it a good whack the the thing just pops open like an easter egg in the right spot. Not sure how he does that.
Here he's working on the second course of the back wall. Those corner 2x4 posts are guide posts, where he's got his level string attached to follow.
Here's Michael sporting a funny mug on his face while sitting on the back wall with the two courses done. His "work sneakers" as he calls them are now filled with holes. but he's having a ball. He literally stands side by side with the workers for 10 hours per day. Thankfully, they are all a bunch of patient men, because Michael does not stop yapping or trying to "help."
More funny faces from Michael sitting atop a tower of block and cement bags:
My waterfall weir does not show up for another week, which puts a crimp in the build. My bottom drains come tomorrow, and we've already got the hole dug under the footer and are ready for the piping. The guys plan on working on Saturday, too, so I think all the block will be done by then. Unfortuantely, I've got a work trip scheduled for Mon-Weds in NYC, so the guys will jump on their other projects and come back on Thurs. I really don't want any work done without my being there to oversee it. As much as I love these guys, they will make decisions if I'm not there to do so, and I don't want any regrets. This will be my last pond build, so I want it done right.
I ordered the cap stones for the pond today. They'll be here next Thursday and will match the slate that will be sheathing the pond beautifully. Luckily, I caught a sale at Lowe's on the slate for only $1.50 a piece (instead of the usual 2.79. Gotta cut corners where I can.
More funny faces from Michael sitting atop a tower of block and cement bags:
My waterfall weir does not show up for another week, which puts a crimp in the build. My bottom drains come tomorrow, and we've already got the hole dug under the footer and are ready for the piping. The guys plan on working on Saturday, too, so I think all the block will be done by then. Unfortuantely, I've got a work trip scheduled for Mon-Weds in NYC, so the guys will jump on their other projects and come back on Thurs. I really don't want any work done without my being there to oversee it. As much as I love these guys, they will make decisions if I'm not there to do so, and I don't want any regrets. This will be my last pond build, so I want it done right.
I ordered the cap stones for the pond today. They'll be here next Thursday and will match the slate that will be sheathing the pond beautifully. Luckily, I caught a sale at Lowe's on the slate for only $1.50 a piece (instead of the usual 2.79. Gotta cut corners where I can.
Sequence 4000 has a 3 year warranty.
koikeepr said:
good to know DoDad. Though I've done extensive research on the Sequence and the Lim pumps, and everything I've read is that the Lim pumps have more oomph and are more true to the actual flow rate than the sequence. I've spoken to folks that have owned both, and have told me that there is a difference between the two brands.
I've got the Sequence 750 and have never had a stitch of trouble with it. I've got nothing to compare it to, and have always felt it was a fine pump. I had every intention of going with another Sequence pump, until I spoke to a bunch of folks--including some that worked side by side with Mr. Lim. Of course, pumps are all in the eye of the beholder. People will swear by their brands like anything else. I plan on hanging onto my sequence as a back up temporary pump in case I have any issues.
I've got the Sequence 750 and have never had a stitch of trouble with it. I've got nothing to compare it to, and have always felt it was a fine pump. I had every intention of going with another Sequence pump, until I spoke to a bunch of folks--including some that worked side by side with Mr. Lim. Of course, pumps are all in the eye of the beholder. People will swear by their brands like anything else. I plan on hanging onto my sequence as a back up temporary pump in case I have any issues.
I know of no research done on the Sequence 4000. This is a new pump from Sequence.
I think I know where you got your info and they are very good friends. They buy parts from wlm lim.
I think I know where you got your info and they are very good friends. They buy parts from wlm lim.
LOL! I am definitely NOT referring to the 4000 series. It's historical info from the 750 and 1000 series. The pond community is tiny, and I'm sure you are well familiar with some of the folks I talked to. But I also yapped with normal folks like little ol' me who aren't selling anything/dealers.
Like I said, I highly respect the Sequence brand and bought it myself after much research. I would not cast my sequence to the curb!
Like I said, I highly respect the Sequence brand and bought it myself after much research. I would not cast my sequence to the curb!
What I like about Sequence is that if a pump fails they replace it from the dealer.
WmLim wants the pump back to try and fix it. I know quite a few people that has had trouble with WmLim.
I'm not trying to sell anything, I'm just stating facts.
WmLim wants the pump back to try and fix it. I know quite a few people that has had trouble with WmLim.
I'm not trying to sell anything, I'm just stating facts.
I confess I lost two fish today.
As I've mentioned previously, my existing pond is leaking from pure age. I did a partial water change yesterday, as I have to replace water every 4 days or so due to the water line reducing as the liner is 15+ years old, and today I go to the pond and I see two large dead koi (thankfully, not my favorites, but I'm not happy nonetheless).
So I mention this to my husband over dinner tonight, and he says, oh, I forgot to mention it, but I had to chlorinate the well yesterday. ARRRRRRRRRGHHHHH!
Every spring we chlorinate the well, but normally I do a partial water change immediately before the chlorination and then wait 2-3 weeks before the next water change to allow for the chlorine to work it's way out before I do the next water change in the pond. So............he FORGOT to mention he did this!
Yesterday when I fed the fish, I noticed that they were close to the top and not interested in the food. The watonai goldfish in the upper pond seemed fine, but not the koi in the lower pond. Something seemed off....Sure enough, that's what it must have been. Unfortunately, it's not like I can do a water change now to fix problems--the water is chlorinated!!!!
The watonai are virtually irreplaceable as I'm one of the few people in the US that have them, and I'm hoping to breed them this spring!!! If I lost them, I think I'd murder!
The rest of the fish seem fine for the moment. I've been running the water at the sink inside the house so that the chlorine works it's way out sooner.
Oi! I'm gonna KILL that man! And in a few days I'm away from the pond to go on a biz trip. I just said to him, you better check the pond each day for potential corpses.
Geez Louise!
As I've mentioned previously, my existing pond is leaking from pure age. I did a partial water change yesterday, as I have to replace water every 4 days or so due to the water line reducing as the liner is 15+ years old, and today I go to the pond and I see two large dead koi (thankfully, not my favorites, but I'm not happy nonetheless).
So I mention this to my husband over dinner tonight, and he says, oh, I forgot to mention it, but I had to chlorinate the well yesterday. ARRRRRRRRRGHHHHH!
Every spring we chlorinate the well, but normally I do a partial water change immediately before the chlorination and then wait 2-3 weeks before the next water change to allow for the chlorine to work it's way out before I do the next water change in the pond. So............he FORGOT to mention he did this!
Yesterday when I fed the fish, I noticed that they were close to the top and not interested in the food. The watonai goldfish in the upper pond seemed fine, but not the koi in the lower pond. Something seemed off....Sure enough, that's what it must have been. Unfortunately, it's not like I can do a water change now to fix problems--the water is chlorinated!!!!
The watonai are virtually irreplaceable as I'm one of the few people in the US that have them, and I'm hoping to breed them this spring!!! If I lost them, I think I'd murder!
The rest of the fish seem fine for the moment. I've been running the water at the sink inside the house so that the chlorine works it's way out sooner.
Oi! I'm gonna KILL that man! And in a few days I'm away from the pond to go on a biz trip. I just said to him, you better check the pond each day for potential corpses.
Geez Louise!
DoDad said:
I know what you speak of. Evolution pumps are the same in terms of dealer replacement (though those consist jamming impellers on Evo's unnerve me).
DoDad, I am not knocking a sequence. I think they're a great pump--or I wouldn't have bought one myself after much research. They have amazing energy ratings too. I've never had a dilemma with mine at all, and I consider her a workhorse, and still love her.
I would urge anyone to buy a sequnce pump from you for sure!
Back from my biz trip this week and visiting plumbing supply shops to get the necessary fittings. My liner arrived on a pallet yesterday along with some underlayment I scored for free. I've also got some old carpeting, too.
We did some work today involving the plumbing in the ground.
You can see the two 3" aerated bottom drains here laid out with the 3" pipe. They are covered with some cardboard at the moment so that no dirt gets in 'em. On Monday, we will pour concrete around these so that they stay put and don't shift or crack with the weight of the water that will be coming. The small 3/4" pipe is for the air, which will be connected to my new Medo LA-80 that I got a fantastic price after some serious haggling on a best offer on Ebay sold by a septic tank company.
The big pipes coming up on the far side will be connected to some rubber fernco 90 degree sweeps and will lead to all the fitration on the side of the house. I hope to grab a Rubbermaid 150 gallon stock tank tomorrow and start putting that puppy together. I've got to get my hands on some 1/2" strapping on Ebay to fill it with and some matala mats.
This next photo shows you that we are up 5 courses on block. Originally, we were going to dig deeper, but we hit some drainage pipes and had to stop. I was going to go 6 courses of block up, but then the wall would be too tall to sit on and view the fish properly--so the pond will be slighter smaller than the 5000 gallons I originally intended. This is perfectly fine with me, as when I stand in the pond, the top of the fifth course comes to my shoulder blades. For some reason the darned thing looked smaller as a sketch on an 8.5 x 11 inch piece of paper. LOL!
You can also see the black flanges on the wall, those are TPR's I got from DoDad. I've got 3 of them that will help push water around so that it gets to the drains. Two are on the front wall (on the left) and one is under the waterfall, which you can see on the right side in the upper photo.
On Monday, we will finish the wall at the far end and seat the savio skimmer that DoDad hooked me up with. You can see the monster up at the top of the photo.
I purchased a sieve yesterday that will arrive next week. I was originally planning on a large sieve, but went with the mid-sized one after the pond became smaller. This sieve and the skimmer will be the only store bought filtration I will have, the rest will be the DIY stock tank and my existing barrel.
More photos to come.
We did some work today involving the plumbing in the ground.
You can see the two 3" aerated bottom drains here laid out with the 3" pipe. They are covered with some cardboard at the moment so that no dirt gets in 'em. On Monday, we will pour concrete around these so that they stay put and don't shift or crack with the weight of the water that will be coming. The small 3/4" pipe is for the air, which will be connected to my new Medo LA-80 that I got a fantastic price after some serious haggling on a best offer on Ebay sold by a septic tank company.
The big pipes coming up on the far side will be connected to some rubber fernco 90 degree sweeps and will lead to all the fitration on the side of the house. I hope to grab a Rubbermaid 150 gallon stock tank tomorrow and start putting that puppy together. I've got to get my hands on some 1/2" strapping on Ebay to fill it with and some matala mats.
This next photo shows you that we are up 5 courses on block. Originally, we were going to dig deeper, but we hit some drainage pipes and had to stop. I was going to go 6 courses of block up, but then the wall would be too tall to sit on and view the fish properly--so the pond will be slighter smaller than the 5000 gallons I originally intended. This is perfectly fine with me, as when I stand in the pond, the top of the fifth course comes to my shoulder blades. For some reason the darned thing looked smaller as a sketch on an 8.5 x 11 inch piece of paper. LOL!
You can also see the black flanges on the wall, those are TPR's I got from DoDad. I've got 3 of them that will help push water around so that it gets to the drains. Two are on the front wall (on the left) and one is under the waterfall, which you can see on the right side in the upper photo.
On Monday, we will finish the wall at the far end and seat the savio skimmer that DoDad hooked me up with. You can see the monster up at the top of the photo.
I purchased a sieve yesterday that will arrive next week. I was originally planning on a large sieve, but went with the mid-sized one after the pond became smaller. This sieve and the skimmer will be the only store bought filtration I will have, the rest will be the DIY stock tank and my existing barrel.
More photos to come.
Looking Good!
looks great! Really jealous....
stroppy
stroppy
koikeepr i cant get my head around the air in the bottom drain doesnt it blow stuff away from the drain ?
following your build with great interest and just a touch of envey :0)
following your build with great interest and just a touch of envey :0)